Skip the Halogen and go with the LED. Less amps better Luminosity. Jeep Wrangler LED Headlamp Conversion Truck-Lite 27270C 7" Round Amazon.com: Jeep Wrangler LED Headlamp Conversion Truck-Lite 27270C 7" Round **Price for Two Lamps**: Automotive
With Italian car electrics of this period (and before!), anything that can be done to reduce the load on the system is well worth doing! - And the increased brightness of the lights makes this conversion a win - win!
Heres a good thread on the subject. http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/technical-q-sponsored-algar-ferrari/65424-308-328-headlight-shootout-results.html Also, I've used a Hella H4 conversion on a number of cars over the years that replaces the 7" sealed beam lights and have been very pleased.
Yes, they have the same H4 three prong connector. Here's my thread from April 2014 when I installed the Truck-lite LED headlights: http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/308-328-sponsored-yellow-compass-group/444673-installed-truck-lite-27270c-7-led-headlights.html Highly recommended.
Gordon is spot on... The truck-lites are incredible. About everyone through our shop w 7" round is using them.... cool temp, high power, low amp req. Price has come down over the past couple years too. Last time you will need to buy bulbs (less hitting a deer or something). LED is the new halogen Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
I like the Truck-Lite LEDs, got a pair for my Land Cruiser and may eventually get another for the 308 if I start driving at night more. They're about the same price as a good set of new glass halogens but brighter and use a tad less power, especially the low beams. Only thing I would add is that you may still need to do a relay mod with them, I had to on the FJ40. If you have severe voltage drop (below 9V or so under load), these lights will flicker rather than dim down. They use more amps than you might think despite being LED, on high beams especially. Combined with a relay mod they're great except the goofy look (which won't matter with popups).
The "relay mod" is where you run a large gauge wire from the battery directly to a relay to reduce voltage drop and then run wires from the relay to the headlights and use your factory headlight wires from the switch to just actuate the relay. It gets a lot more amps and volts to the headlight but in most cases isn't necessary. Remember, these cars aren't from the 50's or 60's. They were sold in Europe which was using Halogen bulbs so the wiring is robust enough. That said, a few corroded connectors between the switch and the headlight can cause a loss of umph at the headlight but re-wiring the circuit is kinda over the top IMNSHO. Lester
I highly recommend the relay mod. I'll be doing one on a 308 over the winter, and it can be done as a "plug and play" where no mods to the existing harness is necessary. The biggest benefit in my opinion is it takes the load off the main harness and switch (I don't have a schematic handy for the 308, but I'd be surprised if it uses relays - whereas the 328 has a much more modern fuse/relay setup. ) It also removes the load off the keyswitch of a 308. I did this in my "F" car, same idea. The control signal is fed from one headlight and plugs into the socket (no splicing). The power for the relays goes to the battery and is fused. I have a third relay for the fan. I have a crimper for non-insulated terminals and all these parts are available from Digikey. I used automotive wire and tried to make it look somewhat OEM, other than convoluted tube wasn't in widespread use in that era. I bought headlight sockets and ran the feeds to the other headlight. One relay for high beam, one for low. First pic is of the relay block mounted, second is the underside/terminal entry, last are battery connection. My headlights are bright (Hella H4 Ecode) and the fan speed is noticeably faster. Same theory applies to 3x8. I have schematics if someone is interested. The purpose of doing the mod this way is that "no cutting" of the original harness is done. I live in a region where the roads are well lit, so H4 is more than ample for brightness. I don't think the LED conversion looks period correct, but hey.. that's me. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
